Flash memory is commonly used to store data for smart phones, navigation systems (e.g., automobile navigation systems), digital cameras, MP3 players, computers, and many other consumer electronic devices. Uniform Serial Bus (USB) devices, memory cards, embedded drives, and other data storage devices often include flash memory due to its small form factor. Dedicated memory controllers in electronic devices can manage data stored on flash memory. Unfortunately, these dedicated memory controllers can decrease the available space in the electronic devices for other components. To reduce the size of electronic devices, memory controllers can be integrated into host processors to, for example, increase the available space for other electronic components. For example, host processors may have integrated memory controllers (IMC) that manage data stored by flash memory, but these IMCs are compatible with specific types of memory and often cannot support new types of memory, such as new NAND memory designed for future standards (e.g., future versions of the embedded MultiMediaCard (eMMC) standard specification). Because IMCs limit electronic devices to particular types of flash memory, those electronic devices may be unable to use new memory with higher storage density, improved performance, or enhanced functionality.
Memory controllers can also be embedded within multi-die memory packages. For example, conventional eMMC memory can be a single high-capacity NAND package (e.g., a NAND package with stacked dies) with an embedded MultiMediaCard (MMC) controller. The embedded MMC controller can free a host processor from performing NAND memory management (e.g., write, read, erase, error management, etc.) that may require significant computing resources. Because NAND dies have small features that make testing difficult, the individual NAND dies are not tested before packaging. Multi-die NAND packages can be tested to identify bad packages (e.g., packages with bad NAND dies) to be discarded. Unfortunately, embedded MMC controllers in bad NAND packages are also discarded, resulting in increased manufacturing costs.